Cannalogue advocates for broad drug coverage for vulnerable groups including seniors and low-income Canadians

TORONTO, Sept. 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — After the recent launch of its national Compassionate Care Program for medical cannabis, Cannalogue is pleased to announce it is launching a petition urging the Ministries of Health to provide national drug coverage for medical cannabis. The United for Access petition was started by physician-led Cannalogue who believes insurance coverage for medical cannabis is essential particularly this year given the emotional and economic toll that COVID-19 has had on disadvantaged and marginalized Canadians.

The petition is an extension of Cannalogue’s Compassionate Care Program, which provides discounts on medical cannabis products for groups such as seniors, Indigenous peoples, veterans and individuals enrolled in a disability, federal or provincial assistance program. If successful, the group hopes the Ministries of Health will include medical cannabis in the national insurance coverage program for qualified groups including low income households.

“These are some of the most challenging times for Canadians – especially those who suffer from chronic conditions such as pain or anxiety,” says Dr. Mohan Cooray. “Removing the barriers that prevent access to medical cannabis is the fundamental goal of Cannalogue and this petition will help us ensure that disadvantaged groups including those below the poverty line get the medications they need,” he says.

National patient advocacy group, Medical Cannabis Canada (formerly CFAMM) agrees. “Cost continues to be one of the most substantial barriers facing patients using cannabis for medical purposes, and there is an unmet need for patients to receive expanded access to insurance coverage for their treatment,” says President and Board Chairperson, Gerald Major. “To address these issues, collaboration across industry, government and the non-profit sector is essential and we are excited to see this petition put pressure towards change,” he says.

Canadians are being asked to help support this campaign by signing the petition at www.cannalogue.ca/united.

About Cannalogue:
Based in Toronto, Cannalogue is a rapidly emerging healthcare technology company that received Health Canada’s first direct-to-sales licence for medical cannabis. Cannalogue’s innovative technology provides a safe, controlled, and cost-effective online marketplace that is globally scalable into all medical cannabis markets.  Engineered by physicians, Cannalogue challenges the status quo and advocates on behalf of patients to educate medical professionals and government officials on the safety and benefits of medical cannabis as a viable treatment option to traditional therapies.

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New cannabis-infused lozenges provide Texas patients with convenient sublingual doses of THC and CBD for conditions such as terminal cancer, spasticity, autism, epilepsy, and incurable neurological diseases

AUSTIN, Texas, Sept. 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Surterra Texas, a division of the privately-held, multi-state, cannabis company Parallel and a leading medical cannabis company in the Texas market, today announced the availability of the first cannabis-infused lozenges for patients in the state of Texas. This introduction of lozenges, in addition to the currently available tinctures, is the second new product offering by Surterra Texas in the past two months.

Surterra Texas’ lozenges are being introduced in two product brand lines:  Soothe Watermelon Lozenges with a 1:1 ratio of CBD:THC (2.5mg CBD and 2.5mg THC per lozenge) and Relief Watermelon Lozenges with a 1:9 ratio of CBD:THC (0.5mg CBD and 4.5mg THC per lozenge). Each child-resistant package of lozenges contains 20 lozenges and will be available for $30 per package.

“We are excited that Surterra Texas is the first medical cannabis provider to offer cannabis-infused lozenges to patients in Texas,” said Marcus Ruark, President of Surterra Texas. “Our latest product offering reflects Surterra’s commitment to continuous product innovation, a wide variety of products to choose from, and the development of advanced, high-quality, natural cannabis remedies for Texans.”

In addition to offering medical cannabis lozenges in Texas, Surterra Texas continues to offer a range of medical cannabis tinctures, including Tranquil^TM, containing a 19:1 CBD:THC ratio; Serene^TM, containing a 4:1 CBD:THC ratio; and Soothe^TM, containing a 1:1 CBD:THC ratio. Each tincture blend has been formulated with proprietary targeted terpene profiles to enhance the experience of the cannabinoid ratios and to help patients with approved treatable conditions under the Texas Compassionate Use Program, including terminal….

More at. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/surterra-texas-launches-first-medical-140000200.html

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A New York state prison that was shuttered in 2011 has been transformed into a new medical cannabis and hemp testing facility owned by Kaycha Labs.

A former state prison in Orange County, New York has been transformed into the Kaycha Labs medical cannabis and hemp testing facility, Mid-Hudson News reports. The medium-security prison was closed in 2011 but previously served as a youth reform farm started by then-Gov. Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

After the state closed the prison, the land was acquired by the Town of Warwick which established the Warwick Valley Office of Technology and Corporate Park.

Read more 

Former New York Prison Turned Into Cannabis Testing Lab

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Ethereal, a cannabis-focused creative agency founded by former senior creatives who have worked with massive luxury brands like BMW Motorcycles and Richemont, caught my eye.

Supported by an international network of creative professionals with extensive experience in branding, Ethereal will seek to bridge the gap between tradition and innovation by combining emerging technologies and strategic intelligence, with all the traditional aspects of branding, brand strategy and public relations.

Meet The Founders

Ethereal’s was founded by four creatives with an extensive background in the luxury and lifestyle categories

·     John Mamus: creative director and designer.

·     Pablo Aguilar: photographer and videographer.

·     Tod Brilliant: creative director and writer.

·     Masako DiDio: managing director.

Mamus founded a boutique high-end creative agency, MAMUS, in 2007.

The co-founders have worked with some of the most world’s most recognized brands, including Mercedes-Benz, BMW Motorrad, Burberry, Fortune, Adidas (OTCQX: ADDDF), FILA, Whole Foods Market, Sports Illustrated, Starwood Resorts & Hotels Worldwide, ICON 4×4, Flont, jetBlue, and Richemont.

Klaus – Courtesy Photo

In addition to these luxury and lifestyle brands, the group has gained tremendous compliance and regulatory insight through their work with global pharmaceutical brands such as Pfizer Inc. PFE 0.16%, Novartis AG NVS 1.06%, Innocoll, and AstraZeneca plc AZN 2.37%.

Some of the agency’s cannabis industry clients include: House of Saka, Van Doran, Dogma Cannabis, TSO Sonoma, D’Fleur, Seven Vices, Asha, and Klaus.

Saka – Courtesy Photo

“The cannabis industry is growing at lightspeed, but it has yet to firmly establish itself in the luxury marketplace,” says John Mamus. “The opportunity is massive, and we have the passion and experience to help the most forward-thinking brands take full advantage. ETHEREAL is nimble and purpose-built for creative excellence, efficiency, and cost effectiveness.”

Over the last 15 years, MAMUS has “perfected the virtual agency environment… working this way with creatives in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, South Africa, Lithuania, Italy, Ukraine… basically the world over,” Mamus concluded. “We are able to work with the best talent, keep client fees very sharp – and focus on the best creative that is possible.”

Image by Javier Hasse, using free-rights images.

Source: https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cannabis/20/09/17510995/from-mercedes-benz-bmw-to-cannabis-seasoned-execs-launch-weed-branding-agency

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• First-mover in the medicinal cannabis and CBD wellness markets
• Makes CBD health and beauty products under Goodbody Botanicals brand
• Merged with Canada’s Stillcanna to create seed to sale operation

Sativa Group PLC (LON:SATI) styles itself as Britain’s number-one listed medical cannabis and cannabidiol (CBD) wellness company.

Now, though its merger with Canada-listed Stillcanna it is aiming to cement its position in Europe as well.

Sativa has capitalised on its first-mover advantage and, following the legalisation of medicinal cannabis in the UK in late 2018, has evolved to focus on the development of an integrated seeds to sale business.

Chief executive Henry Lees-Buckley, a former global executive at Fortune 500 industrial supply firm WW Grainger was appointed in August 2019 and set about on refining the strategic focus and reorganising the operations.

In September, Sativa’ s (LON:SATI) merger with Canada-listed cannabinoid (CBD) extraction and agriculture specialist Stillcanna Inc was given the regulatory green light.

Shareholders in both companies almost unanimously recommended the deal that at the time of it was originally mooted valued the UK company at around £10.7mln.

The merger offers a “unique opportunity to create a leading European CBD seed to consumer company”, said both companies.

“This creates a true European “seed to consumer” CBD wellness and medicinal cannabis group; cultivating and extracting the highest quality CBD, through to developing and producing the highest quality finished consumer products”, Sativa chief executive Henry Lees-Buckley said in a statement.

“This integrated approach supported by optimized production capabilities and laboratory testing allows us to position our brands for strong sales growth not only in the UK but across Europe”, he added.

Lees-Buckley will be chief executive of the enlarged seed to sale business with Joseph Colliver assuming the role of chief financial officer and Anne Tew becoming corporate secretary.

Jonathan Wearing will be chairman, while Angus Kerr, Mark Blower and Jason Dussault will be main board directors. Dussault will also lead the business’ investor relations efforts.

Strong sales

Ahead of the merger completion, Sativa delivered a record month of revenues in July amid what it said was “very strong demand” for a range of sanitiser products through its Goodbody brand.

The cannabidiol (CBD) products group noted that the “strong group sales momentum” had continued over the month with demand from both consumers and corporate clients.

Sativa added  it is continuing to develop its core CBD offer with the launch of its newly combined Goodbody website, goodbodystore.com, which features both the firm’s Wellness and Botanicals ranges

“This site provides the platform for product line expansion and focused efforts to drive sales growth”, the group said, adding that its new Goodbody Wellness line featuring CBD with vitamin D is being “received very well by both consumers and retailers”.

The new trading symbol, (ticker), will be “SWEL” and Sativa Wellness will trade on the CSE and AQSE.

Source:  https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/217782/sativa-emerges-as-seed-to-sales-operation-after-merger-with-stillcana-217782.html

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The duo set up India Hemp & Co in 2019 to bring hemp products from the foothills of the Himalayas to the rest of the country. With a laser-sharp focus on sustainability right from sourcing to packaging, the startup sells four simple, clean products — hemp hearts, protein powder, seed trail mix, and hemp oil — on its website.

Read more at: https://yourstory.com/2020/09/india-hemp-co-cannabis-startup-helping-cement-budding-industry

The post How India Hemp & Co is helping cement the country’s budding hemp industry first appeared on Wake and Bake.

CAPE TOWN, WESTERN CAPE, SOUTH AFRICA, September 1, 2020 /EINPresswire.com/ — Felbridge, a company incorporated in the Republic of South Africa, is pleased to announce that it has entered into a license and distribution agreement with Puregene to market their elite cannabis strains throughout Africa.

“Puregene is a leading Swiss biotech breeding company that has successfully sequenced the world’s first cannabis super-pangenome. This enables Puregene to completely decode all the genetic material contained in the cannabis species, while controlling the makeup of the plant”, says Yannik Schlup, CSO of Puregene. As a result, Puregene can combine their extensive cannabis experience with state-of-the-art breeding technologies. This allows the development of specific tailored varieties, combining a multitude of valuable traits, which include cannabinoids, taste, disease resistance, flower size and yield. With this distribution agreement, Felbridge will be able to provide these leading genetics to licensed growers across Africa.

Leslie Zetler, Chief Executive Officer of Felbridge, commented: “We are delighted to partner with Puregene, a company that has taken the lead in cannabis research and variety development by combining science and data and ultimately revolutionizing cannabis breeding with their artificial intelligence driven breeding technologies. Their elite varieties have unique traits and predictable characteristics that maximize production potential while minimizing risk. Felbridge will be able to provide licensed cultivators and producers with genetically superior hemp and cannabis varieties. Following extensive quality control, the cultivators will obtain source material that is free from pathogens, has the highest biological quality, and includes phytosanitary and seed certification”.

Puregene ensures detailed traceability and protection of its varieties and has developed strong partnerships with government agencies around the world. This enables them to develop new markets where hemp and cannabis can be legally grown on a commercial scale.

“Puregene is the first and currently only company allowed to legally export live cannabis plants from Europe to the US, and Felbridge is excited to open the African market with these world-leading genetics,” Mr. Zetler added.

Dr. Gavin George, Director of Research and IP at Puregene commented: “As a proud South African, I have known of the Zetler family’s high-quality cultivation for decades and I am thrilled that they turned their focus to cannabis. We could not wish for a more experienced propagation and distribution partner on the African continent”.

Switzerland is known for its quality and attention to detail and has one of the most mature low-THC cannabis markets in the world. Puregene continues to focus on research and development in this sector and has established partnerships with many leading universities in Europe as well as in South Africa, where it conducts research-related activities with the University of Stellenbosch.

“As the leading cultivator of cannabis products in South Africa, Felbridge is well placed to be at the forefront of the South African medicinal cannabis industry, and thus to advance the local sector in a safe and responsible manner with high quality and innovative products at all times,” Mr. Zetler added.

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Goodekind, a woman and minority-owned social enterprise that focuses on creating organically grown and consciously sourced hemp products, has released an affordable CBG topical and CBG crumble. Goodekind donates an eighth of their profits to human rights initiatives in the U.S.

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Here’s the introduction to their piece…

Despite being a nascent and still federally illegal operation, most states deemed cannabis companies and ancillary services as essential businesses when COVID-19 hit the U.S. Since that time, consumer demand has sustained – if not grown – and patients have been able to continue getting their medicine. Now, the legal cannabis industry is looking towards the future and “new normal” with expanding, legitimized workforces that have kept the industry alive during a national economic downturn.

According to Marijuana Business Daily’s Annual Marijuana Business Factbook, U.S. medical and adult-use cannabis sales will reach at least $15 billion in 2020, an almost 40% increase from last year. It also predicts industry employment could reach almost 300,000 full-time jobs this year, a 50% increase from 2019. To put those figures in perspective, the number of jobs in the cannabis industry would be about the same as the beverage industry and computer programming. It’s important to keep in mind, only 11 states have completely legal adult-use markets. As cannabis becomes legalized in all 50 states, it’s easy to see its employment surpassing other, more established industries.

The cannabis sector is one of the fastest growing industries in the United States, creating a new workforce amidst the current health and economic crisis. Ohio’s medical market has already created 600 new jobs, a 21% increase since February. And cannabis companies in states ranging from Maryland and Virginia to Oregon are continuing to grow their workforce. A recent report using data from cannabis staffing firm Vangst found 68% of companies plan to increase headcount during the second half of 2020.

More at. https://www.forbes.com/sites/lewiskoski/2020/09/03/the-legal-cannabis-industry-is-creating-a-new-workforce-amidst-the-pandemic/#2f91d0f446c0

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